MGMT 200 Pg 352 379 Criminal Law and Business 12 01 2015 Crime May be positive or negative act that breaks the law Civil Law preponderance of evidence o No jail time o You get fined o Civil and private rights Criminal Law o Only the government can bring criminal charges Private rights are enforced by common law actions when private parties bring suit Crime Categories Felonies o Very serious crime o Fine and up to a year or more in prison o Classified by a degree or class First Degree Murder Misdemeanor o Less serious crime o Classified by a degree or class o Usually a fine or a year or less in prison Gross Misdemeanor Victimless criminal act o Possession of drugs o Can be a misdemeanor or a felony Types of Felonies Violent crimes o Crimes using physical force Murder Rape Robbery Assault Battery Property crimes o Theft o Burglary White collar crimes o Crimes committed by corporations o Nonviolent Bribery Fraud Embezzlement Lesser Offenses Violation of ordinances Similar to a misdemeanor Examples o Zoning o Building regulations o Local safety issues Crimes and Elements of Crime Standard for conviction Small amount of jail time or fine To be convicted of crime must prove beyond a reasonable doubt o Accused committed the illegal act o There was intent or state of mind to commit the act Actus reus Mens rea o Perform a wrongful deed criminal act Criminal acts don t need to be planned o Criminal Negligence o Criminal intent guilty mind wrongful purpose in the Degree of carelessness that disregards the rights and safety of others Failing to act with REASONABLE CARE Business can be convicted of crime o Commonwealth v Angelo Todesca Corporation Truck driver for ATC backed up and killed a police officer The reverse horn wasn t working Both driver and company knew that the horn wasn t working Company convicted appeal court reversed Commonwealth appealed Decision Criminal liability Individual committed the offense Individual engaged in corporate business or project Individual had the authority to act on behalf of the company The corporation was liable just like a person could be Commonwealth won Constitutional Right 5th Amendment When person arrested on suspicion of crime Miranda Rights must be read o Remain silent o Represented by counsel o Any statements said can be used against them Defenses Crime must be prosecuted within the time set by statute of limitations Statute of limitations may TOLL o Legal clock stop running under certain circumstances such as if someone ran away to another country to avoid prosecution Criminal Defendant may offer alibi o Alibi is other evidence to prove that the defendant did not commit the crime Witness testifying that the defendant was not at the scene of the crime doubt Purpose of alibi is to make jury have a reasonable Affirmative defense can be used by defendant o Show the prosecutors claims are true but basically had a reason for them being true that lead to the crime being committed Using self defense to explain assault Can avoid prosecution if ENTRAPMENT is shown o Basically the cops setting up the defendant to commit the crime DEFENDANT WOULD HAVE THE BURDEN OF PROOF Evidence Improperly handled evidence can end a prosecution Evidence must be properly obtained and handled Under the 4th Amendment unlawful search and seizure is prohibited o EXCLUSIONARY RULE EXCLUDES USE OF SUCH EVIDENCE Must have a warrant US v Young o In order to get a warrant you must have PORBABLY CAUSE o Young was selling tax evaded gasoline o IRS caught on to this o IRS got permission from FedEx to X ray Young s packages o Packages had a lot of cash in them o Based on X ray IRS got a warrant to open the package o Government prosecuted Young held that the IRS didn t have permission to X ray Young lost appealed o Decision The packages were effects FedEx states that they can inspect packages prior to or after they are given for delivery No reasonable person would expect to retain his privacy after signing a paper that explicitly said DO NOT SHIP MONEY WE CAN SEARCH YOUR PACKAGES Because of this the X rays did not need a warrant Based on X rays the got probable cause to open and seize the money Young lost District attorney gives the copies of the criminal charges to the Prosecution Process Arraignment accused o Plead guilty o No contest nolo contender o Innocent Plea bargaining is used o Can drop charges if plead guilty Discovery Civil discovery focuses on reducing surprises Parties in criminal case have to do their own investigations Prosecution must disclose to defendant any exculpatory evidence o Prosecutors decide which evidence is exculpatory In civil cases parties must turn over anything requested by the other side o In CRIMINAL cases defendant has no obligation to disclose the prosecution any evidence it has to show the defendant is guilty 5th Amendment protection against self incrimination Prosecution advantages o Investigative resources Defense advantage o Can give prosecution less than complete information because of lack of obligation to disclose Trial Defendant must be found guilty beyond reasonable doubt Acquitted not found innocent but declared not guilty o State failed in its burden of proof Rule against DOUBLE JEAPORDY o However a case can have multiple charges and different trials Jury cannot make decision MISTRIAL may be declared o Prosecutor decides if time and resources will be invested in for each charge another trial White Collar Crime Antitrust Sherman Act Clayton Act Anti competitive practices are illegal o Punishable up to 10 years in prison Hiding or lying about assets in bankruptcy proceedings False info given to bankruptcy petitioners Taking money and services for influence in official actions or Bankruptcy Fraud Bribery decisions Counterfeiting Copying of genuine item without authorization Credit Card Fraud Unauthorized use of credit card o Thief goes through trash and finds receipts and uses the o Cashier makes a copy of your card number and uses it for account personal purchases o Responding to a mailing where you get a free trip but you need to be a member first so you give your card number and you never get your trip Computer and Internet Fraud Going through computer trash and finding card number Unauthorized use of computers Unauthorized use of computer files Economic Espionage Stealing and selling a trade secret Misappropriation of valuable business info o Stealing info without authorization o Copying duplicating selling etc Fined 500k Imprisoned not